James Frawley (photo courtesy of Jimmy Carr)
April 9, 2018 By Nathaly Pesantez
A Woodside native who served in the Vietnam War may have a local street he grew up on named after him.
Community Board 2 overwhelmingly voted to co-name the stretch on 52nd Street between Roosevelt and Skillman Avenues after James Frawley, who served in the army as a combat medic and received several military honors as a result.
Frawley, a lifelong Woodside resident, served with the 101st Airborne Division, and was the recipient of a Silver Star medal and two Bronze Stars, according to his brother in law, Jimmy Carr. The Silver Star is awarded for members of the US Army for gallantry in action, while the Bronze Medal is awarded either for heroic or meritorious achievement and service.
Frawley also received two Air Medals and a Combat Medical Badge, which he was most proud of, according to Carr.
James Frawley (right). Photo courtesy of Jimmy Carr.
The Vietnam veteran worked as a steamfitter prior to enlisting for military service, and continued to work in the field when he returned from the war.
Frawley died in 1998 at the age of 49, his family told Community Board 2, leaving behind two daughters and a son.
Carr said Frawley rarely spoke about his war service, and only admitted—several years after returning from Vietnam—that his medals were stolen from him some time in the 1970s. Carr then set out to recover Frawley’s honors, enlisting the help of then-Congressman Thomas J. Manton and current Congressman Joe Crowley.
While the medals were successfully returned, Frawley died before he could receive them, Carr said.
Mike Reddington, part of the local Knights of Columbus organization in Woodside, the main group behind the street co-naming effort, said Frawley deserves to have the street he grew up on named in his honor. The group approached Carr about co-naming the street about six months ago.
“This is a true American hero,” Reddington said to the board.
An online petition to support the street’s co-naming has gathered over 220 signatures since kicking off several weeks ago.
Councilmember Jimmy Van Bramer said he intends on submitting a bill to co-name the street after Frawley.
52nd Street, between Skillman and Roosevelt Avenues (Google Maps)
